I'll warn you right now. If you have issues with feeling inadequate, you might not want to hang out with Anna. It's a good thing she's already one of my dearest friends, or else I might hate her too. Because do you know what she did today? No? Well, I'll tell you.See that baby, bundled up in the Bjorn? That's Cora, and she's six weeks old. Scott (her daddy) is carrying her to the marathon relay checkpoint to meet Anna (her mommy) after her 6-mile marathon relay leg. (I realize I'm throwing out a few sixes here, but I promise Anna isn't of the devil. She ran six miles, six weeks postpartum because she is amazing, not possessed.)

Anyway, she clocked an incredible time, which I won't post here because she would call it "slow" and I would call it "as fast I've ever run in any race." So. Just know that she is amazing. And not just because she's a great runner, but because she has a million reasons to be stuck up and instead is one of the most down-to-earth, deep-thinking, caring people you'll ever meet.

While I'm at it, I should tell you about the other guy in the picture. That's Larry, my other half. The one that I have to try really hard not to resent for getting more and more good looking as he gets older. (So not fair!) He made his debut on the running scene with a fantastic showing on the last leg of the marathon, the same leg I did last year. I was so stinkin' proud of him when he rounded the corner for the finish. Here's a guy who has zero time to train, and yet he figured out how to make it happen. And it was SO MUCH FUN to be out there with him!

And there I am below, striking a cheesy pose, shouting "we're checkpoint #1!" as if that makes any sense. I am smiling only because I have not yet run 8.8 miles of HILLS. YES HILLS! AND NO I WILL NOT STOP SHOUTING. NO ONE TOLD ME ABOUT THOSE HILLS!!!I forgot my real camera and had to resort to using my phone, which is why I have no proof for you today that Anna exists. All of my Anna pictures came out too blurry. (I told you she was fast).

Oh, and back to Scott (you know, Anna's husband and Cora's daddy). He ran the other leg of the relay, wearing running shoes that Anna and I calculated to be entering the sole-killing teen years. He also clocked a smoking time (with no training!) and could still walk later. We are attributing this disgusting admirable ability to the fact he is five years our junior. And we are secretly hoping he is at least a little bit sore later.

And finally, I have to tell you about Kate. She had to sit this race out because of illness, and it was such a bummer. You see, last year, Kate was the one who told me I was running this race whether I liked it or not inspired me to run the marathon relay. And she has remained the main reason I've pushed myself to go further and faster. She too is an amazing person and a dear friend. And I really and truly missed her this morning.

But in true Kate fashion, she already texted me to tell me to gear up for next year. I think she's going to make me sign up for the half marathon. But I'm not going to think about that until after I've had a margarita and a massage, and maybe another margarita. And some ibuprofen.

Note: In lieu of comments telling me how awesome I am for running so very far, I will be accepting donations toward the aforementioned massage and margaritas. Thank you. :-)